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LOUISIANA STATE COMMISSION 

.^ OF .^t 

LOUISIANA PURCHASE EXPOSITION 

ST. LOUIS, MO. 



Go-oemor WILLIAM WRIGHT HEARD, Prestdent. 
MajO' JORDAN GRAY LEE, Baton Poage, La. 
Col. CHATiLES SCHULER, - - - Keachie, La. 
Gen. I. B. LEVEST, - - Ne^u Orleans, La. 
Hon. HENRY L. GUEYTtAN, Gueydan, La, 

Dr. WILLIAM CARTER STUBBS, ROBERT GLENK, 

stale Commissioner. c4sslsiant to State Convnlssioner. 

Don't fail to see the Louisiana State Building, a replica of the Cabildo, in which the 
transfer of Louisiana took place in 1803. 

See also Louisiana's exhibit in the following buildings: Agriculture, Horticulture, 

Education, Forestry, Fish and Game, Mines and Minerals, Liberal Arts, 

Transportation and Anthropology. 



THE STATE OF LOUISIANA IS MAKING THE FOLLOWING DISPLAY 

AT THE WORLD'S FAIR, ST. LOUIS : 



1st. Louisiana State Building — An 
exact reproduction of ttie "Cabildo" of 
New Orleans in which the actual trans- 
fer of Louisiana from France to the 
Dnited States on December 20th, 1S03, 
took place. It is furnished throughout 
with furniture of the Empire and Colo- 
nial styles. 

2nd. A grand display of agriculture 
in the Agricultural Talace. showing the 
products of the field and' ttie machinery 
by which they are wroHgit into mer- 
chantable forms. A complete sugar house, 
a rice mill, an irrigation plant, cotton 
gins and presses, cotton seed oil mill, 
etc., are shown in perfect forms on a 
reduced scale. Forage and garden crops ; 
tobacco (yellow leaf, cigar leaf and 
cigars, and the famous Perique in all of 
its forms) ; filjre plants and products : 
grains, grasses, clovers, alfalfa, etc., are 
shown in profusion. 

ord. A line display of fruits and 
plants In the Horticultural Building — 



on the floor of the main building and in 
the conservatory. In this display will 
be found the best collection of the finest 
pecans grown. 

4th. In the Forestry Building will be 
found all the trees of her forest, and the 
products manufactured from them. 

.5th. In the Forestry Building, but on 
a diifereut space, will also be found all 
of the birds, fishes and wild animals of 
the State. 

Cth. In the Education Building will 
be found the school exhibits of the 
State, from the Isindergarten to the uni- 
versities. 

Tth. In the Mines and Minerals Build- 
ing, the "Devil in sulphur," a "Pyramid 
in sulphur," Lot's Wife in salt, crude 
and refined petroleums, marbles, 'coal, 
etc., fresh from the mines of Louisiana, 
are exhibited. 

Sth. In the Liberal Arts Building will 
be found topographic maps of the levees 
of the State (35 ft. by 4 ft.). New Or- 



leans of 1803 (2 ft. by 2 ft.), and New 
Orleans of 1903 (13 ft. by 15 ft.). Two 
hundred maps of the Gulf Coast from 
1500 to the present time, some rare old 
books, and a working model of the great 
United States Dock in New Orleans. 

9th. In the Transportation Building 
are illustrations of transportation on the 
Mississippi Iliver, past and present, be- 
ginning with the Indian canoe and end- 
ing with the monster ocean liner of to- 
day. 

10th. In the Anthropological Build- 
ing is a fine collection of Indian reii9s, 
including a number of baskets of rare 
and beautiful types. 

Descriptive pamphlets of each exhibit 
may be had on .-ipplication. For fuller 
information c.f the State, apply at the 
Louisiana State Building for "Handbook 
of Louisiana." Louisiana has a fully 
equipped Department of Agriculture and 
Immigration, which will cheerfully sup- 
ply any information desired. 



Apply to MAJOR T. G. LEE, Commissioner of Agriculture and Immigration, Baton Rouge, La. 

and 'your wants will be filled. 



L 



evees* 



^HE within pamphlet has been prepared by 
Col. Arsene Perilliat, a member of the 
Louisiana State Board of Engineers, and will 
convey to the reader a very accurate idea of the 
immensity of the Levee System and the im- 
munity of the riparian dwellers from floods 
when protected by adequate Levees. 



The Alluvial Valley of the Mississippi River and the Levee System 

Built to Protect it From Overflow. 

The delta of the Mississippi River subject to over- Indian Territory, Missouri, Arkansas, Tennessee, Ken- 
flow extends from Cape Girardeau, 45 miles above Cairo, tucliy, Iowa and Illinois. The States draining in part 
to the Gulf of Mexico, nearly GOO rniles in an air line, to the Mississippi River are Montana, North Dakota, 
and varies in width from :;0 to 80 miles. Its area amounts South Dakota, Wyoming, Idaho, Colorado, New Mexico, 
to 29,790 square miles. Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, North 

It was formed in the geological ages of the past, by Carolina, Virginia, West Virginia, Ohio, Pennsylvania, 

the sediment carried to the sea by the streams drain- Maryland, New York, Indiana, Wisconsin and Minne- 

ing the basins tributary to the Mississippi River. This sota. The area thus drained by the Mississippi River 

delta, of alluvial formation, which is now the richest is as great as the combined area of Austria, Germany, 

and most fertile soil of the United States, was gradu- France, Holland, Italy, Spain, Portugal, Norway and 

ally elevated, so that it now stands above the ordinary Great Britain. 

floods that occur in the Mississippi River; but in times ' Thousands of miles of streams and rivers carry this 
of extraordinary rainfall, and, therefore, of excessive drainage to the Mississippi River, and of these 15,000 
floods, it is subject to overflow by the abnormal flood ' miles are navigable streams. The drainage area is sub- 
heights of the Mississippi River. divided into the following six basins, viz: 

The Mississippi River which flows through this delta 

carries the drainage of 1,240,050 square miles, which Sauare miles 

is 41 per cent of the total area of the United States. Basin of the Ohio River 201,700 

This area drained extends from the Rockies to the AUe- Basin of the Upper Mississippi River 165,900 

ghanies and from Canada to the Gulf of Mexico. It Basin of the Missouri River 527,150 

, „„„ ., . , ... , , ,„„ ., . Basin of the Arkansas River 186,300 

covers 1,800 miles m longitude, and 1,500 miles in gasin of the Red River goioOO 

latitude. It drams ten entire States, parts of twenty- Central Basin of the Mississippi River 69,000 

two other States and territories, besides a part of two • 

provinces of Canada. The States entirely draining to | Total 1,240,050 

the Mississippi River are Nebraska, Kansas, Oklahoma, The Mississippi River, flowing in a sinuous course 

5 



from Cape Girardeau to the Gulf of Mexico, a distance 
of 600 miles iu an air line, has a length, owing to its 
sinuosities, of 1,115 miles. The average rainfall carried 
annually to the sea by the Mississippi River amounts 
approximately to seven hundred and eighty-five (785) 
billion cubic feet, or 159 cubic miles of water, and this 
is estimated as being only 25 per cent of the total rain- 
fall over the basin, the remaining 75 per cent being lost 
either by evaporation, or else by absorption and perco- 
lation through the ground. 

Every year, however, as the country becomes more 
open, better tilled, and therefore better drained, the 
volume of water finding its way to the Mississippi River 
increases and also reaches the river more rapidly, owing 
to the inipi-oved condition of drainage throughout the 
country, thereby swelling and increasing the intensity 
of the floods. Moreover, the period of heavy rainfall is 
limited to two or three of the Spring months of the 
year, and therefore this enormous volume of water 
drained, instead of being spread evenly throughout the 
year is carried to the sea in its enormous bulk during 
a short period of the year, thereby occasioning intense 
and excessive flood waves. This causes excessive fluc- 
tuations between ihe extreme low and high stages of 
water in the Mississippi River. The height of the fluc- 
tuations between extreme low and extreme high water 
is as follows at different points: 



Cairo 53.2 feet 

Memphis 42.7 " 

Vicksburg 59.0 " 

Mouth of Red River 50.8 " 

Baton Rouge 40.2 " 

New Orleans 19.9 " 

A part of these fluctuations is contained within the 
natural banks of the river, but after these become sub- 
merged, the levee system is the only agency which pro- 
tects the country from disastrous overflow, and in their 
present crude and incomplete condition the levees often 
give way, letting in the water over cultivated and fer- 
tile lands and causing widespread disaster. The damage 
is made greater from the fact that the lands of alluvial 
formation are highest on the banks of the stream. On 
the Mississippi River these banks slope away from the 
river at the rate of from three to twelve feet in the 
first mile, then at a diminishing rate until a distance 
of two to three miles from the river is attained, when 
the low level swamp is reached. 

The Mississippi River, on its way from Cairo to the 
Gulf, first hugs the hills on the eastern edge of the al- 
luvial basin from Cairo to Memphis, leaving to the 
westward the large St. Francis Basin, which is subject 
1o overflow, and the area of which is 6,090 square miles. 

From Memphis to Helena the river crosses the valley, 
reaching its western boundary hills at Helena. From 
Helena, Ark., to the Louisiana line it runs parallel to 
the western boundary hills, and from there crosses to 



G 



the eastward, reaching the eastern boundary hills at 
\'icksburg. 

From Vicksburg, Miss., to Baton Rouge, La., it hugs 
the eastern boundary hills, and from Baton Rouge to 
the Gulf it runs through the center of the valley, leav- 
ing lands subject to overflow on both sides of its chan- 
nel. 

Between Memphis and Vicksburg, to the east of the 
river, is the rich Yazoo basin, subject to overflow, and 
embracing 6,G48 square miles. Between Helena, Ark., 
and Arkansas City, on the west of the river, is the 
White River Basin, subject to overflow, and embracing 
9.56 square miles. From Arkansas City to the Gulf, to 
I he west of the river, are the Tensas, Atchafalaya and 
Lafourche basins, all highly populated and thoroughly 
cultivated for cotton and sugar, which are subject to 
overflow', and which embrace 13,004 square miles. Fin- 
ally to the east of the river, from Baton Rouge, La., to 
the Gulf, are situated the rich Pontchartrain and Lake 
Borgne basins, within which is the City of New Or- 
leans, all of which is subject to overflow, and covers 
2,001 square miles. This is better understood by fol- 
lowing the meanderings of the river on the map of the 
Mississippi River Commission. 

These basins are of the richest alluvial land, and have 



been rapidly opening to cultivation. On the lower river, 
from the Louisiana State line to the Gulf, they have 
been settled for about one hundred and fifty years. They 
yield rich crops of cotton, rice and sugar, yielding more 
in dollars and cents per acre than any other lands in the 
United States. They frequently give as much as a bale 
and one-half of cotton to the acre, which represents a 
valtie of $75, while the sugar yield is even greater. 
Hence, the people have taxed themselves to the limit to 
keep away from their fields and homes the flood water 
due to the drainage of 41 per cent of the United States. 

In order to do this, the people have sub-divided the 
above mentioned territory subject to overflow into some 
twenty Levee Districts, organized under the various 
State laws, and managed and operated by Boards of 
Commissioners, generally appointed by the Governors 
of the various States, although some of them are 
elected. The membership of these Boards varies from 
three to twenty-four members per Board. 

The following table gives the names of the various 
Levee Districts of the Valley, their location, the num- 
ber of members which compose them, the length of 
levee line built by them in each State, and the area 
partly protected, and eventually to be protected, by 
these levees: 



"- <P • CD -M ^ 

S . o5 5J <» g 

LOCAL NAME .2 ■? Z '^ <B O m 

OF DISTBICT. a ;2 £ -2 2 . 3 

ig g^S £sfi 

o ^ < -' - 

Upper St. Francis.. ? ,,. 

Lower St. Francis.. 9 Missouri 80 2,8(4 

65 Illinois 

Reelfoot ? Tennessee 24 453 

125 Kentucky 
St. Francis 24 

Red Fork 9 , , „^_ , ^„, 

j)ggjj^ g Arkansas 35 1 4,5G2 

Chicot 3 

LoTe^Yaro :■.:.•; •.-.^Mississippi 312 6.926 

Tensas Basin 7 

Fifth Louisiana .... 8 

Atchafalaya 7 

Lafourche 9 

Buras 5 Louisiana 712 14,695 

Pontchartrain 9 

Orleans 9 

Lake Borgne 3 

Grand Prairie 5 

Total 1,490 29.790 

These Boards have by law the power of levying and 
collecting a tax to build levees, and this taxation takes 



all manner of form to bring as large a revenue as pos- 
sible. 

All the districts have an ad valorem tax on the as- 
sessed value of the property within their boundaries 
varying from 5 to IG mills on the dollar, additionally 
they tax themselves from 2% to 5 cents on each acre of 
land in the district. Also they levy a railroad tax vary- 
ing from ?5.00 to ?100.00 per mile. Most of the districts 
tax every bale of cotton raised within their confines 
from 25 cents to ?i.Ou. Every 1,000 pounds of sugar 
made within their territory is taxed from 25 to 50 cents. 
Every sack of rice, barrel of potatoes, of onions and 
oranges is taxed from 3 to 10 cents; in fact, all of the 
produce is taxed, even the oysters do not escape it, as 
they are taxed a certain sum per barrel, on the ground 
that the exclusion of fresh Mississippi River water from 
their beds is conducive to their health, and. therefore, 
to their taste. 

In addition to this, these Levee Boards have issued 
large amounts of bonds, predicated on their revenues; 
and additionally in the State of Louisiana, prevails a 
tax of one mill for levee purposes on all of its State 
assessments, whether they be hill property above over- 
flow or bottom lands subject to overflow. 

The following table gives the rate and amount of 
taxation of the various levee districts of the valley, and 
the revenues derived therefrom, also the amount of 
bonds already issued for levee purposes; 



Amount of 
Local Name of Levee Bonds 

District — Outstanding. 

Reelfoot District, Tenn $ 100,000 

St. Francis District, Mo 

St. Francis District. Ark 750,000 

Yazoo Miss. Delta Dist., Miss 1.074,000 

Lower Miss. Dist., Miss 1,150,000 

State of Louisiana General 

Engineer Fund 

Atchafalaya Basin Dist., La 850,000 

Bossier District, La 199,900 

Buras District, La 25.000 

Caddo District, La 199,800 

Fifth La. District, La 400,000 

Grand Prairie District, La 20,000 

Lafourche Basin District, La 275,000 

Lake Borgne District, La 100,000 

Orleans District, La 325.000 

Pontchartrain District, La 786,000 

Red River, Atchafalaya and 

Bayou Boeuf Dist., La 250,000 

Tensas Basin District, La 90,500 



Mill-Tax 

Rate Tax Per 
Permitted. Acre. 
Mills. Cents. 
5 



iiy4-i5% 

5 

1 
10 
10 
10 
10 
10 
10 
10 
10 

1 

10 

10 
10 



2% 

5 

5 

5 

5 
(e) 

2% 

5 
(a) 

3 



Railroad 

Tax Revenue from 
Per Mile. Produce Tax. 

$30-?10 

$30-?10-?5 (a) 

(b)$G,543.60 

(c) 157,532.05 

$60 75.585,12 

$60 6,988.74 

$30 33,001.93 

$60 8,596.75 

$20-$30-$60 54,810.50 

$30 552.78 

$50-1100 50,578.57 

$60 3,373.70 

(a) 

$100 36,043.39 



$G0 
$30-$G0 



(a) 
(a) 



$6,655,200 



Gross Annual 
Revenues. 



$ 6,000.00 

64,859.58 

321,819.45 

315,808.58 

267,723.57 
262,699.18 

25,734.24 
8,265.58 

21,312.05 

158,637.19 

2,540.43 

171,338.05 

23,660.59 
138,702.84 
105,841.50 

53,514.90 

12,479.22 

$1,960,936.95 



$403,607.13 

(a) None Authorized. (c) Cotton Tax One Dollar per Bale. 

(b) Privilege Tax. (d) None Assessed. 
One Dollar on each and every arpenl front of land facing the Mississippi River. An arpent, approximately, 

five-sixths of an acre. 



(e) 



It has not been possible for me to secure the assess- 
ments of all the districts o£ the Valley, but the follow- 
ing table gives the assessment and revenues from all 
sources, for levee purposes, of some of the main dis- 
tricts of Louisiana, and shows the rate of taxation 
which those revenues represent when applied to the 
assessed value of the property. Each of these figures 
should be increased by one mill on the dollar, as these 
districts all pay the general one mill levee tax prevail- 
ing over the entire State. 

Rate of 
Assess- taxation on 

Name of district. ment. Revenue, the dollar. 

Tensas $3,155,000 

Fifth Louisiana 5,847,000 

Atchafalaya 15,056,000 

Pontchartrain 0,119,000 

Lafourche 10,510,000 

Lake Borgne 1,009.000 

Buras 419,000 

Grand Prairie 182,000 

City of New Orleans 138,700,000 

It is seen from the above that the tax of most of the 
districts amount to over IVi per cent, and in one case 
to as much as 2.8 per cent. Yet the people labor cheer- 
fully under this load, glad to be immune from overflow 
seven years out of every ten, and hoping that the time 
will come when by persevering effort they will be en- 
tirely safe from the scourge of the waters of the Missis- 
sippi. 



$12,500 


3.9 mills 


158,000 


27.1 




202,700 


10.8 




105,800 


17.3 




171,300 


10.2 




23,600 


14.1 




8,300 


19.8 




2,500 


13.7 




138,700 


1.0 





The table of revenues above further shows that be- 
sides the $6,655,200 of bonds already applied to levee 
work in the Mississippi River Valley, the districts de- 
rive from taxation about $1,901,000 annually. Of this it 
is safe to say that $1,500,000 is actually expended in 
earthwork, the balance being devoted to the payment 
of interest on bonds issued, and to the cost of admin- 
istration and operation. 

Prior to 1882, the United Slates Government contri- 
buted nothing to levee protection. After the great flood 
of 1882, the Mississippi River Commission spent some 
money on levee building under the theory that in order 
to obtain and maintain deep low water navigation, a 
confinement of the waters within the banks was neces- 
sary. 

For many years following, the amount spent by the 
Government on levees was limited to such stretches as 
were deenied by the River Commission as falling under 
the above consideration. No money, however, could he- 
spent for the express purpose of affording protection 
from overflow. 

Four or five years ago Congress removed this objec- 
tionable clause from the Rivers and Harbors Bill, and 
allowed the River Commission to spend such money 
out of the appropriation, for the purpose of giving pro- 
tection from overflow, as it deemed expedient. In ac- 
cordance with this, the River Commission has allotted 
approximately $1,000,000 per annum to levee building. 



10 



This amount is effective less tlie sum to be deducted for 
the cost of administration, which is aljout 5 per cent, 
leaving about $950,000 to be expended in earthwork. 

This help of the federal government has revived the 
hopes of the residents of the valley who had been re- 
duced to despair by the great overflows of 1882, 1884 and 
1890, and although the great flood waves of 1892, 1893, 
1897 and 1903 have broken records of the past, and 
their own successive records, culminating in the great 
flood of this year, the amount of territory overflowed 
this year from breaks in the levees is only 10.7 per cent 
of the area of the valley, while in 1882 the entire valley 
was overflowed. Hence the alluvial residents have taken 
new heart, and are straining every eitort to build their 
levees higher and stronger. 

The 1,490 miles of levees on the Mississiipi River now 
contain about 107,238,000 cubic yards of earth. To 
, complete them to the Mississippi River Commission 
grade will require approximately 94,054,000 cubic yards 
of earthwork. The estimated final contents of the levee 
line is 201,292,000 cubic yards. The line is therefore 
now built to G4 per cent of completion. 

The standard adopted for this estimate, which is 
known as the Mississippi River Commission grade, is 
a standard of size and height for the levees which is 
estimated to be strong and high enough to withstand 
the largest flood which may pour into the Mississippi 
River. It is extremely diflicult to make such an esti- 



mate, with any degree of accuracy, owing to the many 
functions which enter into the problem, yet this Com- 
mission grade was established by carefully considering 
, all of the data on hand, and so far the indications are 
that it is not far from correct. 

Another very important consideration enters into the 
work of levee building on the Mississippi River, and 
that is the constant shifting of the stream itself. The 
river runs through a bed of sand and silt of its own 
making and deposited by itself in ages past. This is 
more or less friable, and more or less subject to ero- 
sion by a strong current velocity. In the concave bends 
of the river the erosion or "caving," as it is called, is 
very great at flood periods, while on convex bends, the 
reverse occurs, and large accretions of soil, or "sand 
bars," as they are called, are deposited by the river 
dropping its silt. This erosion or caving occurs at a 
rate varying from nothing to as much as 2,000 feet per 
year. Unless the bank can be protected or revetted in 
some manner to stop this erosion, the levee is soon 
reached and caves into the stream. The only remedy 
then is to build the levee far enough back to give it a 
reasonable lifetime against the encroachment of the 
river. To this end levees are sometimes built as far as 
four miles from the stream. The land condemned by 
this operation, and which is therefore thrown outside 
of levee protection, is at the loss of the owner, as the 
laws permit the condemnation of lands for levee pur- 



11 



poses without compensation to the owner. This hard- 
ship adds to the burden of the poor riparian owner, who 
sometimes has paid onerous levee taxes all of his life, 
and Anally sees his entire plantation thrown outside 
of levee protection, and eventually engulfed into the 
river. Yet the residents of the valley of the Mississippi 
cheerfully pay their levee taxes, and will even contri- 
bute more if they can do so. It is estimated that three- 
fourths of one per cent of the levee line is destroyed 
annually by caving into the river. 

lu conclusion I will state, as a result of my expe- 
rience of fifteen years in levee construction on the 
Mississippi River, that I believe a levee system can be 
constructed which will protect the Mississippi Valley 
from overilow. It is only a question of money, endeavor 
and time. The fertility of the soil, and the general 
resources and richness of the alluvial lands justify this 
great expenditure, and as a business proposition, the 
Mississippi Valley when thoroughly protected will be 
oue of the most valuable assets of the United States. 
As it is now, only partially protected, it is the home 
and source of wealth of millions of our citizens. Every 
year floods of increasing intensity are poured upon it 
by the drainage of our country, yet the inhabitants of 
the valley struggle manfully against them. They clamor 
for assistance from the federal government to protect 
them from a scourge rendered more terrible each year 
by the development of the country, yet while hoping that 



this help will come sometime, in a measure commen- 
surate with their needs and the disaster inflicted, they 
do not remain idle, but work to the full extent of their 
means and ability. They are entitled to the strong as- 
sistance of the federal government, and they trust that 
in due time it will be forthcoming. 



LEVEES OF LOUISIANA. 

A large portion of the State of Louisiana, amounting 
to 23,000 square miles, which is about one-half of the 
total area of the State, is of alluvial formation. By 
alluvial formation is meant that territory which was 
deposited in geological ages by the Mississippi River. 
It was slowly formed by the mighty river dropping the 
sediment which it carries to the sea; and this sediment 
thus deposited rising higher and higher and filling up 
the estuary which extended as far up as Cairo, became 
in the course of ages the richest agricultural ground in 
the United States. It has been often said that territory 
thus formed was the "cream of the soil of the United 
States." 

This alluvial part of Louisiana, through which the 
Mississippi, Red and the Atchafalaya rivers flow in their 
onward course to the sea, is thickly settled and highly 
cultivated; but at the time of flood in these rivers the 
extreme high water which they carry to the sea would 
overflow this alluvial territory were it not for the artl- 



12 



fieial embankments, or levees, as they are called, which 
line the sides of these streams. The earliest settlers in 
the State of Louisiana first occupied the highest spots 
in these valleys, spots which were rarely overflowed and 
only by extreme high waters. Even then, at times, they 
found it necessary to .surround their properties by arti- 
ficial embankments or levees, in order to protect them- 
selves from overflows at times of extreme flood period. 
Little by little, as the country became more settled, ad- 
ditional alluvial territory was occupied by civilization, 
and these levees had to be extended along the banks 
of the streams. 

At first the levees were built by the riparian inhabi- 
tants themselves and at their own expense. In the 
course of time, however, the State appropriated money 
for the construction of levees, and later on, the allu- 
vial territory was divided, by legislative enactments, 
into levee districts, which taxed themselves varying 
amounts in order to maintain these levees. Finally, the 
United States Government, recognizing that the levee 
system was necessary lo improve and maintain the nav- 
igability of the Mississippi River, devoted a certain 
amount of money annually to the construction of levees. 

At present the levee line by which the State of Lou- 
isiana is protected from overflow is about 1,430 miles 
long. Of this 815 miles Is situated on the Mississippi 
River, 395 miles on Red River and tributaries, 70 miles 



on the Atchafalaya River and 150 miles on Bayou La- 
fourche. 

The State oi Louisiana levies, for levee purposes, a 
one-mill tax on all assessed property within its bound- 
aries, whether it be situated on alluvial land subject to 
overflow, or hill lands above overflow. This yields ap- 
proximately $315,000 a year. In addition, the alluvial 
territory has been subdivided into 15 levee districts, 
which, by local taxation, raise a revenue of approxi- 
mately $1,000,000 a year for levee building. This rev- 
enue is raised first, by an ad valorem tax on the as- 
sessed value of the property, which is generally ten 
mills on the dollar; second, by a land tax, which is gen- 
erally 2Vo cents per acre; third, by a produce tax levied 
on cotton, sugar, sugar cane, molasses, potatoes, onions, 
rice, and even oysters; fourth, by a tax on every rail- 
road, varying from $20 to $100 per mile. In addition to 
this, the various levee districts have the right to issue 
bonds, the proceeds of which are devoted to levee build- 
ing, and the total authorized issue of which amounts to 
$4,999,000. The United States Government, through the 
Mississippi River Commission, has been disbursing 
about $700,000 per year for the last three or four years 
in levee building on the Mississippi River. 

These taxes, high as they may seem, are easily and 
cheerfully met by the residents of the alluvial portion 
of the State of Louisiana. The planters find their levee 



13 



tax is a cheap msurance against the floods which for- 
merly use to inundate their crops; and moreover, the 
productiveness of the alluvial lands of the State of Lou- 
isiana is so great, and the returns yielded by agricul- 
tural products raised on these fertile lands so far ex- 
ceed in value those obtained from the less productive 
hill lands, that this tax, or insurance, is considered 
cheap and easily met. 



The levee system, although not yet complete, either 
in extent or in size, has substantially and practically 
protected the State of Louisiana from overflows since 
1893. and the day is not far distant when its comple- 
tion will insure full protection to the inhabitants of that 
most fertile section of the State. 



14 



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LIBRARY OF CONGRESS 



014 433 195 3 



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